Head Teacher

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Kia ora, my name is Cynthia Copeland and I am the head teacher/owner of Windsor Montessori Preschool. I trained at St. Nicholas Montessori College Dublin where I gained my qualifications to teach Montessori at both preschool and at primary school levels. I have taught in Dublin, Ireland and in an International Montessori School in Paris, France. I came to New Zealand to help establish a Montessori preschool in Nelson for a group of enthusiastic parents wanting a Montessori based preschool for their tamariki/children.

I moved to Invercargill with my husband Steve and our two children in 2008. Since then I have taught in a variety of Invercargill preschools and kindergartens, where I have enjoyed working alongside many wonderful teachers, children and families. 

I feel privileged to be doing what I love, seeing tamariki grow into confident independent and happy little people as they embark on a journey of discovery and learning.

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Kia ora! My name is Mel Lemm and I am a fully qualified and registered ECE kaiako/teacher. I began my ECE training at the Southland Campus of the University of Otago College of
Education where I gained my ECE teaching degree. I have since trained at Te Rito
Maioha/Early Childhood New Zealand where I gained my Montessori diploma and recently my
Post Graduate Certificate in Leadership, enroute to completing my Masters in Education. I
also hold certificates in Te Ara Reo Māori, Tikanga Māori and New Zealand Sign Language
(NZSL)

Like Cynthia, I too have taught in a variety of Invercargill preschools and kindergartens, and I also have experience working as a visiting kaiako/teacher in home-based ECE. These teaching opportunities have been invaluable in terms of the knowledge and experience I have gained whilst working with the many tamariki/children, whānau/families and kaiako/teachers, of whom I have numerous and very fond memories. During these tenures, I collaborated with respective whānau and my teaching teams to conceptualise, plan and implement various creative and practical learning experiences for the tamariki I worked with; including sustainability initiatives, kapa haka, and more recently, practices of social and emotional learning (SEL).
I’m super excited to be working both with and alongside Cynthia and Tae as we come together to realise Cynthia’s Montessori teaching dream to sow the seeds of learning for an ‘education for life’ in our tamariki. Working with our smaller group of tamariki allows us to ensure high quality, authentic learning experiences that honour and embrace the Montessori teaching philosophy, whilst we also weave together and respectfully celebrate Aotearoa New Zealand’s bi-cultural ECE curriculum of Te Whāriki. Having the best of both worlds not only makes for a unique and holistic ‘kiwi’ learning experience for our tamariki, it also empowers them to discover their own identities as they become the capable and competent individuals they were born to be.

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Poipoia te kākano kia puāwai
Nurture the seed and it will blossom
Ko te ahurei o te tamaiti arahia ō tātou māhi
Let the uniqueness of the child guide our work

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Hello, I'm Tae. I moved to this beautiful country from Korea in early 2020 after graduating with a Bachelor Degree of English Education in Korea. While teaching different age groups, I have realised my passion for early childhood education and began studying early childhood education in New Zealand. 

In my free time, I enjoy the outdoors, working out, and camping; as well as spending time at the beach or park in the summer. I have recently moved to Invercargill and can't wait to explore the deep south. I am looking forward to building meaningful relationships with children and whānau. 

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